Shocked by US peace proposal, Ukrainians say they will not accept any formal surrender of Crimea

'Crimea is not only central to Ukraine-Russia conflict, but also risks dividing the US and Europe'

COLUMN. Regardless of the Trump administration's talks on a possible ceasefire succeed, the Black Sea peninsula, annexed by Russia in 2014, remains at the heart of the conflict, writes Le Monde columnist Sylvie Kauffmann.

As Putin signals a three-day ceasefire, what are Kyiv and Moscow's peace deal demands?

Donald Trump says Ukraine is prepared to give up Crimea, territory that Russia annexed after 2014. So what do both sides of the conflict want to see before ending the war?

While Washington urges Kyyiv to make concessions, Trump's initiative is criticised as a "capitulation plan". Is the situation of Ukraine so hopeless that it has to accept it? Experts say that.

Why Crimea is so important to Russia and Ukraine

The peninsula, which was illegally annexed by Russia in 2014, has long been coveted by Moscow, which wants Ukraine to officially surrender the territory as part of a peace deal - something Ukraine does not want to do.

The administration of US President Donald Trump has proposed a peace plan for Ukraine that includes changing the status of Crimea and "freezing territorial borders" on the current front lines.

US peace deal: Germany asks Ukraine to reject Trump’s proposal

Germany’s defence minister, Boris Pistorius, said that Ukraine should not cede all territory occupied by Russia in a peace deal proposed by President Donald Trump. DAILY POST reports that the US president is mounting pressures on Moscow and Kyiv to end fighting. “Ukraine has, of course, known for some time that a sustainable, credible ceasefire or peace agreement may involve territorial concessions,” Boris Pistorius said in an interview with the…